Two Years Later
by DebajoDeLaCafeina
Summary: Sequel to Valentines Day and One Year Later. Tim and Abby's first child is born, but they recieve news shortly after her birth that will rock McGee's world and change their lives forever. McAbby/ Tiva/ slight Jibbs.
1. Small Baby Girl

(A/N and Disclaimer: Again, we own absolutely nothing. _Nada. Rien_. We planned on making this another one-shot to follow on from the first two but it kind of snowballed and we decided to make it a four-chapter short story. Chapter 2 is being written as we speak. Also, this is Kelsey's first fic so be kind when reviewing. I personally think she's done a good job. Like it, love it, hate it - leave a review and tell us so.  
This fic is dedicated to: Rhi and Jo, for being Rie's hardcore NCIS fan-buddies for life; Lydia and Nicki, for putting up with her obsession; and Pauley Perrette for being a legend in Kels and Rie's eyes. Done? Ok, lets get going...)

* * *

Abby McGee had long ago learned that pain and love worked together. It just seemed to come naturally. Before Tim, there had been her impressive, ongoing list of boyfriends who caused her nothing but aggravation and hurt – the absence of love, which not even a constant supply of work and caffeine could cure. With Tim, there had been the protection from suffering and the security that Abby had longed for – the absence from pain, which made her love him even more. Pain and love seemed to contradict yet compliment each other – and Abby had never felt this stronger than now, looking at the face of her beautiful child after nine hours solid of ripping herself apart to deliver her firstborn to this world. 

'Oh, my God' she whispered, the grip on Tim's hand that had been at a vice-like pressure for several hours waning as her hands instinctively reached towards her baby.  
'You did it, Abs' Tim said softly. 'We did it'  
'It's a girl' the smiling nurse said as she passed Abby and Tim's newborn daughter to her parents. 'Six pounds, eleven ounces. Congratulations'  
'Hello, little one' Abby said, taking her daughter in her arms and leaning against Tim, who put his arm around both of his girls. Looking up at her husband, her eyes shone with happiness. 'Is this really ours?'  
'She's ours, Abs' Tim said, his voice cracking with joy. 'She's our baby girl'  
They looked in awe at their new daughter, lying contentedly in Abby's arms and blinking serenely up at her parents as if to say 'Where am I?'  
'She's so perfect' Tim said. 'You did great, Abby'  
'I couldn't have done it without you' Abby said, as Tim kissed her temple. They smiled at each other and then returned their gaze to their baby.  
'What should we call her, Timmy?' Abby said quietly; before the nurse returned, popping her head around the door.  
'Excuse me, Mr. and Mrs. McGee; but you have visitors. They seem to be friends of yours, I did say that Abigail-' (Abby winced, grimacing at the use of her full name) '-would be very tired but they did seem very insistent. A Mr DiNozzo, Mr Mallard, Miss David and Mr Gibbs-'  
'Should have guessed' Tim smiled.  
'Send them right in' Abby said, sitting up a little, moving carefully with her daughter in her arms.

* * *

It had been good, Tim though to himself, having their friends from NCIS present all through Abby's pregnancy. They would never forget the looks on their friends faces when Abby broke the news to everyone, only days after finding out herself (and running around the house yelling for Tim before flinging herself on him screaming 'We're having a baby, Tim!'). 

Tony claimed to have seen it coming all along, even though he had almost passed out at the news. Gibbs murmured something about Rule 12 going all to pot with this team but hugged the prospective parents proudly and congratulated them like a proud grandfather-to-be – which, in a way, he was, looking out for Abby like a daughter all these years and treating Tim like a fond father-in-law since he married Abby. Ziva had blessed the unborn baby in Hebrew before hugging Abby, and had been a happy companion for the mother-to-be on her shopping trips for baby clothes and antenatal classes which Tim was unable to make. And Ducky had immediately begun to ramble about the benefits of pregnancy, and was reminding Abby to take folic acid before Tony and Gibbs whisked him out of the bullpen for celebratory drinks with the rest of the team.

They had become almost like extended family to the McGee's during Abby's pregnancy – and now, with their daughter finally here, there were no people they would rather share their joy with. He looked at Abby, gazing at her daughter in awe and compassion, and knew she felt the same way.

* * *

Barely a moment later Tony, Ziva and Ducky came bursting into the room in an excited babble of sound- 'Is everyone okay? What did you have? Abby, are you alright-'  
'Everyone's fine, we're all fine!' Abby assured them all, beaming. 'Thanks for coming back, you guys-'  
'Coming _back_? We haven't left since we got here with you two! Gibbs has been through about twenty cups of coffee-'  
'Sixteen' Ziva corrected Tony with a smirk.  
'-fine, sixteen cups of coffee and has been pacing the corridors like a clockwork toy on overdrive for about four hours. Ducky's been quizzing the student nurses on their medical training and telling them about the best way to perform autopsy examinations on decomposed bodies-'  
'Tony…' Tim tried, glancing down at Abby and his daughter.  
'-Ziva's been getting tetchy and snapping at everyone for no apparent reason and I've been wired waiting for something to happen with you guys' Tony rounded off.  
'Well, something has happened' Abby smiled, holding up the blanketed bundle in her arms slightly. 'Little one, say hello to Aunt Ziva, Uncle Tony and Uncle Ducky – wait, where's Uncle Gibbs?'  
'Coffee number seventeen' Ducky and Ziva said together. Tim and Abby laughed.

* * *

The newly-appointed aunt and uncles crowded round to get a good look at the newborn.  
'Where's the other one?' Tony asked, breaking the mesmerized silence. Abby and Tim exchanged quizzical looks.  
'Which other one?'  
'The other twin' Ducky replied.  
'_Twins?_' The new parents raised their eyebrows this time.  
'You were expecting two to pop out of there…right?' Tony asked.  
'Are you kidding me? I thought I was about to die just having the one' Abby said, shaking her head. 'What gave you that idea?'  
'You told us' they answered in unison.  
'What?' Tim asked. Abby furrowed her brow, looking at Tony, then Ziva, before starting to laugh.  
'Oh, you guys! I made a joke when I was about five months gone to Ziva about how it'd be a kick if I was having twins because my body was going crazy with just one' She shook her head, in amused exasperation, looking at the confused female officer. 'I was kidding, Ziva! Joking, you know? And now everyone thinks I was expecting two all along-'  
'Twins do run on my grandmother's side' McGee mused. 'But no, we've only got the one. Our little girl' he said, smiling down at the baby. Abby lifted her arms and McGee gently eased the yawning newborn out of her mother's arms and into his own, rocking her gently as her eyelids began to flicker and droop. 

Ducky, Ziva and Tony all looked on at the family tenderly, until Tony spoke again.  
'We had names picked out for you guys and everything' he said. 'We thought – if you had one boy and one girl, that is – you'd name them after your two favourite people. Ziva-'(here, Ziva raised her eyebrows sceptically and Abby and Tim glanced at each other) '-and T-'  
'Don't even say it, Tony' Ziva said, punching her other half's arm lightly. 'I know for a fact that if this baby is to be named after any woman, it will not be me'  
'Not that we don't love your name Ziva' Tim said. 'But we decided a long time ago that if it was a girl, we'd name her after…Kate'  
'I don't think there's any other name for her' Abby added quietly, looking at her daughter asleep in her father's arms.  
Everyone let out a breath – apart from Tony, who was still trying to get his word in.  
'Okay then - Kate and-'  
'Gibbs' Tim. Abby, Ducky and Ziva said. Tony looked sceptic.  
'Gibbs? What kind of a name is Gibbs?'  
'Not his last name, Anthony' Ducky admonished good-naturedly. Everyone looked at Tony expectantly.  
'Tony, what's Gibbs' first name?' Abby said, smirking at her friend and colleague.  
Tony bit his lip, not noticing the door opening quietly behind him...  
'...Gibbs?' he asked warily.  
He was rewarded with a slap to the head as Gibbs himself entered the room behind him.  
'Not that I'd want my awful names inflicted on any baby, DiNozzo, but the fact that we've worked together wor years and you still don't know my Christian name amazes me' Leroy Jethro Gibbs said, striding into the room and throwing an empty coffee cup into the bin by the door. Tony rubbed his head wincing.  
'If you hate your names anyway, why did you slap me?'  
Gibbs shrugged. 'Force of habit?' Buthe wasn't looking at Tony. His gaze was locked onto Abby.  
Everyone stepped sideways to let him through as his blue eyes rested on Abby; lying looking tired but ecstatic in bed, next to Tim; looking every bit the proud new father with a tiny, pink-faced baby in his arms.  
'Is everything okay?' he asked, uncharacteristically softly.  
'Yes, everything's fine' Abby said. 'There's someone we'd like you to meet'  
Tim stepped forward and laid his daughter carefully in Gibb's open arms.  
'This is our daughter, Caitlin McGee'

Everyone held their breath to see what effect this would have on him.  
Gibbs smiled, his sharp eyes taking on a new tone of almost fatherly affection as he looked at the sleeping baby.  
'She is beautiful, Tim, Abs. Congratulations'  
'Yeah, congratulations you guys' Tony added. Ziva and Ducky nodded.  
'You did great, Abs' Ziva said, mimicking Gibbs, and everyone laughed.  
'You guys…you'll all be godparents, right?' Abby said tentatively. 'We'd love it if you were – the Director too, even if she is caught up in a conference today'  
The rest of the team exchanged looks, before nodding. 'Thank you, Abby. We would all be honoured' Ziva smiled. 'I am sure Madam Director would not object either'  
'When are you planning to have Caitlin christened?' Ducky asked.  
'In about two months, when things get a bit more settled. It'll take us a while to get used to being a family of three' Tim said, Abby nodding her agreement.  
'Does she have a middle name?' Gibbs enquired, not taking his eyes of Caitlin. Tim looked at Abby.  
'We didn't really think of one – we knew if it was a girl that we were going to name her after Kate. What do you think, Abby?'  
Abby looked for a long moment at her daughter before replying.  
'I thought…other than Caitlin, I liked Minerva as a name'  
Tim smiled again. 'Caitlin Minerva McGee. I like it'  
'It suits her perfectly. And you two will be fantastic parents' Ducky said. Abby and Tim could only smile. Their lives, for now, were complete and perfect and there was no place either of them would rather be than with their new daughter and their closest friends.

* * *

There was a moment of tranquil silence before the door opened and the nurse returned.  
'Mr and Mrs. McGee; if it's okay by you we'd like to take your daughter to examined thoroughly – just to rule out any health problems'  
'Of course' Abby said quickly, and the nurse walked over to take Caitlin from Gibbs into her own experienced arms.  
'Do you have a name yet?' she asked.  
'Caitlin Minerva McGee' Abby and Tim answered together, linking their hands as they spoke.  
'Oh, how lovely. We'll bring her back shortly' the nurse said, smiling at the assembled group as she left the room.  
'Bye, Caitie' Tony called softly as the nurse whisked Caitlin away. Everyone smiled, and began to talk animatedly about the new arrival. Tidings of new life brought out the best in everyone.  
'Who do you think she looks most like?' Tony asked. Abby and Tim looked at one another.  
'I'd say she looks more like you, Abby. Did you see the shape of her face? Just like yours'  
'Your nose and your shape eyes, though, Timmy. I think she'll look like both of us really' Abby replied. 'Blonde hair, though. I had hoped she wouldn't turn out like me, but-'  
'Your hair's naturally blonde, Abs? You never told me' Gibbs said. 'I couldn't picture you with anything but black hair, even as a baby'  
'I've been dyeing it since I was in elementary school. Dark blonde isn't a very Goth look' Abby mused. 'I thought about letting it grow out and go natural but I'd look like Pepé le Pew gone wrong on Halloween'  
'Fair do's' Ziva laughed. 'But it looks like little Caitlin will be following in your footfalls, no?'  
'Close enough' Abby grinned. Tim kissed her lightly, and put his arm around her.  
'I can't wait to take her home' he said quietly, as everyone else began talking again.  
'Me neither. It seems like we've been waiting forever for this. But we've got Caitlin now, we've got our house and we've got each other. And this lot' Abby said with a small smile. 'Everything's so…perfect right now. I never knew it would turn out like this'  
'I'm glad it did' Tim replied, squeezing her hand gently and sitting down beside her. 'Everything's going our way'.

* * *

The infectiously happy atmosphere continued for almost half an hour. Tony and the others had decided to go out and celebrate Caitlin's arrival later that evening, and Abby was just telling Gibbs he'd better bring her back a Caff-Pow when the nurse returned, holding Caitlin; with a severe-looking doctor behind her. Abby held her arms out and took Caitlin, as everyone fell silent looking almost fearfully at the doctor.  
'Mr. and Mrs. McGee, I'm afraid I have some bad news for you concerning your daughter'  
The atmosphere in the room dropped by degrees. Gibbs glared at the doctor for being the bearer of bad news and Abby looked anxiously at Tim, drawing him closer to her. He swallowed. 'What is it?'  
'Your daughter has sectoral heterochromia'  
Tim looked uneasily around the room as Abby's eyes welled up with tears.  
'What does that mean?' Gibbs said sharply, noting Abby's tearful face.  
'Please, please don't let our baby die; I'll do anything-'Abby began, a single tear falling down her cheeks and onto Caitlin's blanket. Tim held her closer, still looking at the doctor with a mixture of fear and aggravation.  
'What does that mean for Caitlin?' he asked, loudly. The doctor looked a little stunned.  
'No, no, that's nothing to worry about. All it means is that your daughter will have eyes with two different colours present in each iris. Look at her' 

Everyone crowded in to look at little Caitlin. Blinking her big eyes bemusedly up at everyone, they could indeed see that her eyes were turning the trademark McGee green of both her parents; but with definite streaks of brown in the corner of each eye.  
'It won't affect her vision and it won't harm her health in any way. Your daughter will just have interesting eyes, that's all' the doctor said. Abby half-laughed and blinked to clear her tears; but Tim was still looking uneasily at the doctor.  
'Then…if that doesn't mean anything…what's the bad news?'  
All eyes were on the doctor as he swallowed slowly before speaking. You could have heard a pin drop.  
'Mr. McGee, I'm sorry to have to tell you…but tests indicate that your daughter is profoundly deaf'  
The silence seemed to echo round the room as everyone looked at Caitlin, then Abby, then finally McGee. Abby pursed her lips, nodding her head slowly and taking a deep breath before looking at her husband.  
'Well…it could have been worse. We'll get through this. Won't we, Tim? Tim? Tim...?'  
Tim couldn't speak. All he could think about was that his own newborn, beautiful daughter would grow up isolated in her own silent world – unable to ever hear her Daddy say he loved her...

* * *

(Like we said, Chapter 2 will be coming up shortly. In the meantime, hit the blue button and tell us what you thought? We'd really appreciate it, and we can't get better as writers if people don't give us some direction. Gracias.) 


	2. Facing Facts

* * *

(A/N and Disclaimer: Nothing's ours. Absolutely _nada. Kaput_. Got it? Very well then, we may continue.  
Someone asked me where I got the name Minerva from in Chapter 1; it's from the Greek goddess of intellect (for the daughter of 'the wise one') and I just liked the name. Thanks to everyone who reviewed Chapter 1, hope you like this part. Okay, here we go…)

* * *

Tim couldn't focus. The next half hour was a blur; it felt like he was watching a scene without really being a part of it. He knew the doctor was talking about things like 'awareness'…'support'…'specialist education'…he knew Gibbs was consoling Abby and she was nodding and saying it could have been worse. Every so often Tim felt Abby's eyes on him and was careful not to meet them. He couldn't hear her; he couldn't hear any of them. For now, his world was as silent as Caitlin's – but he knew, after a while, normality would return to him and he would be able to take in what they said. For Caitie; who moments ago had been complete and perfect, that would never happen. 

He reached out his arms and motioned for Abby to give Caitlin to him. He stared at her; she seemed like the only real thing in the room. He was aware of everyone watching him but he didn't look away from her. He looked into her eyes; her beautiful, two-tone eyes and her eyes looked back up at him, never leaving her daddy's face. He wondered if she knew her life had just been changed forever. Of course she couldn't. She was two hours old. How could she have understood the impact of the doctor's words before? She didn't understand. But he sure as hell did.

He turned away from Abby, looking pleading at him to say something, do something to show he was alright; from Gibbs, his face as unreadable as ever but sympathy in his ice-blue eyes; from Ziva, biting her lip and looking so sad for the three of them; from Tony, for once careful not to say anything or do anything to make things worse; from Ducky, who probably had a million facts about deafness to tell them but whose lips were sealed and whose eyes were understanding and sad. He didn't even register the presence of the doctor, the bringer of the news that had shaped – _ruined_, Tim thought bitterly - his little girl's life. He walked slowly over to the window, his back to the others. He didn't want their understanding, their commiserations. He wanted to be alone with Caitlin; for now. Abby needed him, but selfish as it was he needed time alone. It was alright for her, growing up with deaf parents and a fluent knowledge of sign language. But he, Tim, would never be able to communicate with Caitlin so freely. And knowing this almost made him angry at Abby, angry at the doctor, angry at Caitlin – angry at himself.  
'Tim…-' Abby's quiet, sad voice broke into the terrible silence.  
'Leave him, Abby' Gibbs spoke softly, placing a hand on Abby's shoulder. 'He needs time alone with his daughter. When he's ready, he'll talk to you. But for now, leave him be'  
Abby looked up at Gibbs, her eyes full of tears and worry. He leaned down and hugged her like a father, and she buried her head in his shoulder.  
'I know how hard this must be for you - all of you' the doctor cut in, earning a glare from Ziva. 'But you mustn't let your daughter's condition seem like too much of a negative issue. Nowadays, deaf people are seen not as a disabled community, but more of an ethnic group, with American Sign Language as their own language. Hearing people, particularly parents of deaf children, can get support from groups of others like themselves where they can learn American Sign Language to communicate freely with their children. There is no evidence to show that deaf children perform worse in school -particularly specialist schools with teachers able to communicate in sign language – than hearing children. As long as Caitlin is shown love, support and acceptance in her family and community, there is no reason she should not live a full and happy life'  
Abby nodded, glancing at Tim. Tim kept staring straight out of the window.  
'Abby's parents were deaf and they lead happy, normal lives and raised two healthy hearing children' Gibbs said. 'Deafness doesn't compromise quality of life unless the people around the deaf person lower their self esteem by showing shame in them because of their condition'

Tim knew this was Gibbs' hidden way of saying _'Put your own feelings on the back burner, we know you're upset but this isn't easy for Abby either'_. But he was afraid of what he might say if he turned round now. He saw Tony put his arm around Ziva and knew that Abby needed his support – as he needed hers. Slowly, he turned around; and wordlessly went over to Abby. Sitting on the hard plastic seat beside her bed, he laced his fingers with hers and they sat in silence, looking down at Caitlin between them.

* * *

The doctor looked from Abby and Tim, to Gibbs; who gave him the kind of _'Leave. Now'_ look that made concrete wilt; to Tony and Ziva; standing quiet and subdued with their arms around each other, and Ducky; eyes lowered behind his glasses.  
'If you need to ask me anything, please don't hesitate to call me' He said, as the nurse opened the door for him. 'We'll keep Abigail and Caitlin in overnight but you're free to go in the morning. A nurse will come in later to show you how to bath Caitlin. Until then…goodnight. And…sorry' he added, bowing his head as he left the room.  
'We should probably go, too' Tony said, looking at Gibbs; who nodded.  
'Yeah, I think it'd be best to leave you two alone with Caitlin for now' Gibbs agreed. 'Would you like us to bring some of your things from home this evening, Abby?'  
Abby thought back to the sudden start of her labour; she hadn't brought her carefully packed hospital bag from home. 'Yes, please. Thanks for coming, you guys'  
'We called your brother. He and your mother visit once you're home and settled' Ziva said softly. 'See you later; Tim, Abby, Caitlin'  
'Goodbye' McGee said expressionlessly. He didn't take his eyes off Caitlin as Gibbs, Tony and Ziva left. Ducky, however, stayed in the room; looking hard at Tim. 

'Timothy, I know this might not be the most convenient of times, but could I speak to you for a minute?' he asked gently.  
Tim looked up at him, and nodded. Passing Caitlin to her mother he stood up and followed Ducky out into the corridor; the rest of the team had left already.  
Tim expected Ducky to berate him for not supporting Abby as well as he should in their situation. Instead, the older man placed a hand on the young agent's shoulder, and sighed.  
'Timothy, I can't pretend to know exactly how you're feeling. I can guess how hard it must be for you and Abby knowing your daughter will be deaf, while you can hear'  
Tim closed his eyes, and clenched his fists.  
'I…she was so perfect. She is so perfect. But she'll never be able to hear me tell her that' he replied in a hollow voice, his voice cracking from emotion and half an hour of silence.  
'She is still your daughter, Tim. With your brain, picking up American Sign Language won't be a problem to you. And you won't find a more experienced speaker than your wife' Ducky reminded him. 'It's early days. Things will begin to fall into place when you've faced the facts, hard as it may be. But you know that out whole team is there for you and Abby, no matter what happens'  
Tim managed a small, grateful smile. 'Thanks, Ducky'  
'Any time, Timothy. Go on' he said, standing up and gently pulling Tim with him. 'Abby needs you with her'  
Tim nodded, and Ducky turned and walked away down the corridor. Tim opened the door to Abby's room and returned to her side. She looked up at him, and though he couldn't smile yet he put his arm around her. They sat gazing at their daughter in total silence, barely breathing.  
Words would come, when the news had begun to sink in. But not yet.

* * *

The next few hours passed in near-silence. Abby kept giving Tim almost frightened looks, which he managed to return with the most genuine smiles he could manage. Truthfully, he had no idea what to say to her. He knew she probably felt the same way he did about Caitlin's condition; and he knew she wanted to talk to him about it. She wouldn't be his Abby if she didn't. But he didn't feel ready, so they barely spoke throughout that evening. Tim left the talking to Abby when the rest of the team dropped in later on to bring Abby her overnight bag and say hello; this time, with the Director. (Everyone was careful not to mention the way Gibbs and Jenny entwined their hands as they looked at little Caitlin sleeping in her garish plastic crib at the foot of Abby's bed. They valued their lives more than that.) Once the team bade them goodnight, the couple lapsed back into the uncomfortable, monosyllabic atmosphere that they had unconsciously adopted since finding out about Caitlin's deafness. Instead, they silently drank in every detail of their daughters face as they watched her, for need of something - anything - to focus on other than the still-raw truth of her deafness. 

Her eyes were slowly turning from blue to clear, vibrant green like both her parents', save for the section of her irises that were already turning hazel. The doctor was right, they really were interesting eyes. Each passing hour she seemed to look more like her parents. Tim could already tell that she had the same direct stare as Abby from the way she focussed on things when she was awake. If she knew how to smile, Abby decided, then her smile would be exactly like Tim's - eyes first, mouth second. Though from the way he was acting now, so different to his proud fatherly joy immediately after Caitlin's birth, Abby wasn't sure if he would ever really smile again. When she was asleep, hey eyelids flickered in a dream like Abby's did even without caffiene; and occasionally she breathed out through her nose in a soft sigh that seemed to echo round the room. Her parents heard it, even if she couldn't.  
Their first night with their daughter was one of the longest of Abby and Tim's lives. They couldn't wait to get Caitlin home - but for completely different reasons than before. More than anything Tim wanted to be in their own house and feel like something was finally normal again.

* * *

'We're home' Tim said, as he opened the front door. It was the first time he had spoken to Abby or anyone else all morning, and she was glad of it. Maybe now things would begin to turn slowly into a situation they could make sense of.  
Perhaps not. Abby and Tim spent most of the morning sorting out baby supplies and getting the house back in order - Ziva appeared to have turned out half of Abby and Tim's bedroom trying to find Abby's overnight bag (which, incidentally, had been next to the umbrella stand in the hall the whole time) - that they barely had a moment together. Between checking on Caitlin, feeding her and straightening out their scattered posessions, Abby barely saw Tim for most of the morning. However, at around noon she popped back into the nursery to check on her sleeping daughter and found Tim sitting holding her - amongst Caitlin's crib, changing table and other furniture - in the rocking chair Gibbs had given them at their baby shower. It was only a month ago and it seemed like a lifetime. Already time seemed split into two halves: the half where they knew of her deafness, and the other of blissful ingorance. 

Abby carefully walked towards her husband, feeling almost nervous of him. He saw her, and smiled briefly.  
'I couldn't resist' he said. 'I didn't wake her, don't worry'  
'She's a deep sleeper' Abby said. 'It's fine'  
Tenatively, she put her hand on Tim's shoulder and was relieved when he didn't shrug her away. Instead, he looked her in the eye for the first time in almost a day.  
'Abby, I'm sorry-'  
'It's fine' she said again. 'Really' she added, at the disbelieving look on his face. Tim shook his head.  
'This is as tough for you as it is for me. You put yourself through hell to give birth to Caitlin and then we found out-'  
'I know' Abby cut him off gently, leaning her head on his shoulder with a small smile. 'But - Tim...why didn't you talk to me?'  
Her anxious question was met with silence but Abby wasn't giving up now.  
'Timothy...'  
'I was scared' he said simply. 'Scared of what I might do or say. I was upset and I was angry - not at you!' he said, as Abby's eyes became ominously watery. 'Never at you' he added softly, putting an arm around her and cradling Caitlin in the other. 'I didn't know how to deal with this - any of it - and I didn't want to say something I didn't mean and hurt you'  
Abby nodded. 'I should have tried harder to understand or to talk to you'  
Tim sighed. 'I - I always imagined, even before we got pregnant, of what our first daughter would be like. Just like you. Smart and beautiful like you. Going on to do great things, have a good, happy life. A full life. A - a normal life' he finished. Abby removed her hand from his shoulder and looked at him hard.

'Being deaf doesn't mean our baby isn't normal' she said sharply. Tim looked right back at her.  
'I didn't mean-'  
'Yes, you did!' Abby said. If Caitlin hadn't been asleep in Tim's arms she would have been yelling.  
'My parents were deaf. They got good jobs, had good friends, raised two good kids. Their lives were normal even if they did communicate differently. Caitie isn't any different to them - or to us. So she can't hear. Does that make put her in a lower class to another little girl her age who can? No! I know how hard it is - I'm her mother, Tim. All those things you said - Caitie can do all them and more, deaf or hearing. You're her father! You should love her no matter what'  
'I do' Tim said softly, and those two words, thought spoken softly, contained so much emotion that Abby fell silent.

'I love our daughter, Abs. She's not even a day old and I would kill for her - I would die for her. She's part me, part you and something completely new and unique and I love everything about her. I want more than anything to watch her grow up and be proud of her, standing there telling anyone and everyone 'That's my little girl, my little Caitie'. But it's not her - it's me...'  
'What's you _what_?' Abby said, her gaze softening as Tim looked down at Caitlin.  
'I don't speak ASL like you, Abby. I'm scared I'll never be a part of Caitie's life - a proper father' Tim said, and Abby saw his eyes fill with tears too. 'You can teach her sign language, you can talk to her - but I'm worried that'll never happen for me. I love her, Abby - but I'll never be able to tell her that'  
'Timothy McGee' Abby said, and Tim looked up. Her green eyes were blazing with emotion. 'Don't. _Ever._ Think. That. So you don't know ASL - _yet_. Did you not listen to a word the doctor - or Gibbs, or me - said yesterday? There are hundreds of groups and classes we can go to, all three of us, for you to learn sign language. Once you learn, you'll be able to talk to Caitie as well as I can. And I'll teach you too' she said, cupping his face with her hand and stroking his cheek. 'We've got each other and we've got Caitie. You can do this. We can do this - as long as we can talk things through instead of spending hours in total silence acting like thing will get better if we're quiet enough'  
Tim nodded, swallowing to clear the lump in his throat that had formed as Abby spoke. 'Thanks, Abby'  
'I love you' she reminded him, kneeling on the floor beside him. 'Never forget that'  
'I love you too' he replied. 'And I won't'  
Abby smiled and gave him the thumbs-up. He put his arm back around her shoulder and they sat watching Caitie sleep.  
'By the way, Abby' Tim said, after a long pause. 'You have a beautiful daughter'  
'We really do' she replied. Tim smiled, the first real smile since they found out about Caitie's deafness, and kissed Abby, then Caitie, gently on the foreheads.

There are good silences and bad silences. Timothy McGee had finally learned the difference.

* * *

(A/N: Wow, I managed to get the second chapter written and up the day after the first. Please tell me what you think, big thank-you to everyone who's reviewed Chapter 1 already. Chapter 3 is on the way. _Merci, et au revoir_.) 


	3. Getting To Know You

(A/N and Disclaimer: We own nothing, we're just not cool enough. Also, if anyone EVER finds out what Abby's little brother is really called, please tell us. We're only up to Season 3, not sure if it's mentioned after that but we have no idea what his real name is. Until we find out, Rie can name him. Hope you're enjoying so far; we're having fun writing it. This is the longest chapter yet because we ned tofit so much in to keep to our planned plotline! Can't personally see what's so hard about learning sign language, I'm learning BSL - British Sign Language - and it's not too hard. Ah well.  
On a sign language tangent please note that the signs I've tried to use in here are probably inaccurate BSL, not the American equivalent. Okay? Let's rock and roll...)

* * *

'...Caitlin Minerva McGee, I christen you in the name of the Lord...' the minister finished, splashing holy water onto Caitie's forehead.  
The six-week-old baby gurgled happily as the cool water tickled her forehead. Abby smiled, squeezing Tim's arm as the minister welcomed their daughter into the House of God. Tim smiled back, watching Caitie as she opened and closed her small fists. The minister smiled and passed Caitie back to Abby. Her mouth twitched as if she was about to smile; but tiring of the effort she grasped Abby's thumb and attempted to stuff it in her mouth. Ziva and Tony, standing nearby as godparents along with Gibbs, Ducky and the Director, laughed. Maybe soon it would be their turn. Ziva had been showing her sparkling diamond engagement ring to anybody who'd pay attention all day long.  
'Hey!' Abby laughed as Caitie pulled her hand towards her gummy mouth. 'Leave Mommy alone, you little cannibal'  
Tim's smile was a little strained. _What's the point, _he wondered, _of talking incessantly to a one-and-a-half month old who couldn't understand you, even if she could hear a word you said?_ But he would never tell Abby that. Caitlin blinked her green-and-brown eyes at him and he took her from Abby, jiggling her in his arms. She bumped her head against his shoulder and buried her face in his jacket, dribbling all over the lapels. He smiled, stroking her head. Her soft scalp was covered in tufts of light blonde hair. Until you saw her face, there was no way you would have guessed that the gothic Abby Sciuto had spawned this bouncy, blonde baby. When you did, there was no mistaking that she was Abby's daughter. Tim saw more of Abby in Caitie every day.

* * *

The past six weeks had been a blur of sleepless nights, midnight car journeys to soothe a crying Caitie and Tim and Abby juggling work between the two of them. They had had a months leave each before and after Caitie was born and were now alternating between going into the office and working from home. Caitie was a hit with the NCIS team. Ducky doted on her, and was always delighted to have her visit him in autposy (apparently Caitie did not share her mother's earlier fear of the place, though Tim was a bit dubious of having his daughter play in a room full of dead bodies in varying states of examination and decomposition.) Tony was always happy to entertain his favourite goddaughter with funny faces and had proved a surprisingly competent babysitter on more than one occasion when Abby and Tim were both unable to get out of work and sit with Caitie. Ziva, too, showed a different side of her personality around Caitie - almost maternal, having to be held back by Tony on more than one occasion when a passer-by had disturbed the baby during a nap. Gibbs' paternal instinct also shone through - watching Caitie so tenderly at times, like he had done his own late daughter many years ago, that Tim felt almost mean when he had to take Caitie home. And everyone found it almost funny that the sharp-natured, straight-laced Director could play so naturally with baby Caitie. She had really become part of the team. 

Abby was proving to be a brilliant mother, not seeming to mind getting up at ridiculous times to breastfeed Caitie and adapting to motherhood so naturally it was like Caitie had always been there. Though they had discussed - well, Abby had discussed, Tim had sat half-listening and dwelling on his own thoughts - starting ASL classes together the first six weeks of Caitie's life had been too hectic for them to fit in a spare moment of sleep, let alone night classes in sign language which Abby already knew in the first place. She accepted advice from nobody and took everything in her stride. Abby was as sure of her own abilities as a mother as she was her abilities as a scientist. McGee, however, didn't have that confidence.

After his talk with Abby the day they brought Caitie home, Tim had felt better about her deafness, and had participated happily in bathing her, changing her and all other paternal activities. He had been able to proudly introduce her to his family - Sara had fallen in love with her first niece at first sight - and had been happy to answer when strangers on the street began cooing over his daughter. But as he watched Caitie grow, he knew that he would soon be unable to talk to her at all. She would be picking up sign language from the snippets Abby incorporated into everyday activities - 'more', 'milk', 'bath', 'bed'... Tim even managed to get those mixed up. Gibbs and Abby were patient teachers but he felt like an idiot and was reluctant to learn any more. As Caitie grew and learned her own unique language, Tim felt like he was fading out of his daughters life. And God forbid, what if Abby fell pregnant again? Another child, another silent half-life in a hearing world - another child who would look at their father with contempt as he struggled to communicate with them. If he couldn't talk to Abby about these secret, bitter feelings; how was he expected to tell Caitie even the simplest thing?

* * *

But for now, at least, Tim McGee smiled as people congratulated him and cooed over Caitie, laughed with Tony and Ziva and buried his real feelings down deep. However, it was hard for him to ignore Abby, her mother and younger brother talking in rapid sign language a few feet away. His heart sank as Abby glanced at him, then smiled and motioned for him to come over. Abby's brother, Jake, smiled as he approached. Their mother, Gloria, greeted him - moving her right hand in a small arc at shoulder height. He imitated her, holding Caitie in his other arm. She smiled excitedly and held out her hands. Tim passed her first grandchild to her, and sighed inwardly. He could barely say hello. How could he be expected to talk to Caitie as she grew up? But Abby's voice brought him out of his reverie.  
'Tim, would it be alright if Mom and Jake come round for dinner tomorrow night? They've hardly seen Caitie since she was born, and since Mom uses ASL it'd be good for Caitie - and you, since we haven't started classes yet?'  
'Yeah, sure!' Tim said, careful to keep his voice light. 'That'd be lovely'  
'Great. Thanks, Timmy. I have no idea what I'm going to cook, but...' Abby broke off as her mother signed something to her.  
'She wanted to know what you said' she told Tim, at his blank look. She replied to her mother in ASL, mouthing words carefully. Lip-reading. There was another problem. It may not have been Abby's strong point but Tim didn't understand a word. Feeling increasingly isolated and frustrated, he had to bite his tongue to stop himself screaming. He turned to his brother-in-law, who was watching the exchange.  
'I take it you speak ASL, right?' he asked carefully. Jake smiled.  
'Yeah, Abby and I learned it practically before we learned English. Don't worry, I'm sure you'll pick it up in no time. After all, cops like you have to be smart, don't they?'  
Tim managed a smile, though it was the last thing he felt like doing.  
_Not this cop, _he thought to himself as the thought of the following evening began to gnaw a pit of foreboding in his stomach.

* * *

Far more quickly than Tim would have liked, the following evening rolled around and he was opening the door for Gloria and Jake and faking a smile as well as he knew how. They had been let out of work early by Gibbs in a fit of goodwill. Abby was grateful to him, but Tim felt that work would at least have delayed the dread he had felt watching the clock waiting for his in-laws to arrive - though he had smiled and thanked Gibbs in front of Abby. He was annoyed at himself for feeling this way. Gloria was always kind to him and though he wasn't that well accquainted with Jake he seemed as good-natured as the rest of his family. But it was the feeling of isolation and stupidity that made Tim's blood boil. It was like high school all over again; with geeky, freaky Timothy McGee unable to join in with the coolest of cliques. Except now the 'clique' was his own family. They were all fluent in ASL,Tim could barely say 'hello'. They would be able to talk to Caitie as she grew up, be an active part of her life, the part that gave her means of communication by passing on their knowledge. He, Tim, her father, would be ignored as she grew into her own identity with her own language that sadly, Tim just couldn't understand. 

Hating himself for thinking it, Tim felt that if Gloria wasn't present it would have made his evening easier to bear. Jake and Abby communicated in ASL every so often, but more usually they worked as a team; one child speaking aloud - for Tim's benefit more than anything - and the other translating in ASL and lip reading for Gloria. He was grateful for Abby trying to make him feel more included, but felt like a particularly dense child when Abby translated Gloria's ASL for him, and they laughed at something said in the fast, finger-spelling tongue he was so horribly ignorant of.  
Caitie sat gurgling in her high chair, her sparkling wanderlust eyes traveling round the room. Tim forced himself to concentrate on why his in-laws were here - for Caitie - to stop himself cracking his glass in frustration whenever he took a sip of wine. When they rested on his, Tim smiled at her, and she seemed to work hard to do the same - though all she managed to do was dribble all over herself. Tim found himself making excuses to take Caitie out - checking her nappy, cleaning spit from her bib; anything to avoid spending longer than absolutely necessary at the table. He knew that when he left, his wife and her family would be able to communicate in their own language without him as a fifth wheel.

They managed to make it through the starter - a simple prawn cocktail with Abby's secret recipe sauce (Tim had always wondered whether or not it contained Caff-Pow; you never knew with Abby) and the main course - roast chicken, which Tim had made several completely unecessary trips to 'check up on' while the others were eating their starter. Over the course of the meal Tim had grown even more surly and silent, and the increased use of sign language around the table had aggravated him further until he would barely look at or talk to even Abby. As everyone began deliberately and clearly signing simple words to Caitlin - Abby had translated for him, but he had barely listened - he had felt increasingly angry, unable to understand words which his wife had learned before kindergarten and his daughter would probably grasp faster than he did. The dessert, a creme brule� which Abby had spent hours agonizing over in the kitchen, was in the fridge and Tim had offered to take it out and serve it; when Abby met his eyes.

'Why don't we both go, Tim?' she said, lightly and evenly. Tim knew from experience that it was an order, not a request; and it was only his will to get away from the table that stopped him feigning ignorance and following Abby into the small kitchen from the dining room. Abby closed the door after him, the catch clicking in the silent kitchen, before wheeling round and glaring at her husband.  
'What the _hell _do you think you're doing?' she hissed, keeping her voice low - Gloria, Jake and Caitie were in the next room; even if only Jake could hear them.  
'What am I doing?' he said stubbornly. Abby narrowed her eyes.  
'You're being antisocial, rude and you're not even trying to understand our ASL. Tim, the main reason my family are here tonight is to help you! And you're just being plain ungrateful. You could at least try to appreciate what we're doing. Even if you don't like it, Caitie needs to be around people who can begin teaching her sign language-'  
'Well, I'll just get going then if my own daughter doesn't need me' Tim said bitterly. Abby swallowed, realizing what she had just said, but held her ground.  
'Caitie's almost two months old, Tim. It won't be long before she starts using simple signs herself. You're not even trying. How do you expect to be a part of her life if you won't even attempt her language?'  
'Our daughter can barely hold her own head up, Abigail! It's not 'her' language yet. And it certainly isn't mine' he shot back.  
'Stop being such a-'  
'A what?' Tim said loudly. He was well aware Jake could hear him in the next room but he didn't care anymore. 'A what, exactly?'  
'An ungrateful, narrow-minded bastard!' Abby yelled, her voice matching and exceeding his in volume. 'Can't you just try and understand-'  
'Don't talk to me about understanding, Abigail!' Tim shouted. 'You have no idea how angry it makes me when everyone but me knows ASL, how everyone but me can talk to Caitie when I'm just sat there wondering how I'm going to cope as she gets older! You grew up in a deaf environment! You have no idea how it looks to an outsider, or how humiliating it is to have no idea what everyone else is talking about and to have your wife, the woman you love; turn round at say "Never mind, I'll tell you later" like you're some stupid kid! My daughter will never be able to hear me tell her I love her, that I'm proud of her, any of the things normal kids should hear their daddy tell them-'  
'There you go again, acting like Caitie being deaf is something to be ashamed of!' Abby yelled back. 'It's only a problem because you make it one, Timothy!'  
'Maybe from where the hell you're standing!' Tim roared.  
'You're so-!' Abby clenched her fists, fighting back whatever insult she had been about to unleash before breathing heavily and lowering her voice. 'I love you, Timothy; but when you're being so ignorant and not even trying to understand what we teach you it just makes me so angry!-'  
'In that case, I won't inflict my presence on you any more' Tim spat angrily.

He pushed past her and slammed open the door, striding through the dining room. Gloria, though unable to hear the argument, had apparently been filled in by Jake. She stood up as he walked through, signing rapidly - exactly what he didn't need. Jake look at him fearfully, having heard every word of the argument in the kitchen. Caitie's little mouth turned wobbled at the sight of her daddy so angry and she began to cry. Abby, who had been hot on his heels as he left, stopped; about to go to Caitie. Tim turned round and looked at the pair of them, his eyes lasering into Abby's. Hers were welling up with tears. His felt hot with anger, and his hands were shaking.  
'Tim-' Abby began. Tim cut her off.  
'See to Caitie' he said, slamming the door to the hall open and walking out.  
'Tim, please... where are you going?'  
Tim turned back and looked at her. Tears were falling down her cheeks now. Part of him wanted to go to her and hold her and apologize for everything he had said and done. But the other part of him wanted out - now.  
'Out' he answered, turning his back on Abby as he opened the door and left.

* * *

Two hours later, Tim had finally come to rest on a park bench; God only knew how far from his home. While his anger was bubbling and boiling in his veins like lava and the memories of the disastrous dinner and his argument with Abby were fresh in the fore of his mind, he had walked mechanically through street after street, as the sky grew dark and stars and streetlamps flickered into life above him. The night was chilly, and Tim hadn't brought a coat, but somehow he felt that the cold night air helped him cool down. He couldn't believe he had yelled like that at Abby. The image of her in tears as he left refused to leave him alone as he wandered around. He had even made Caitie cry. For the first time Tim was glad his daughter couldn't hear. He would have been horrified if their baby girl had heard her parents arguing like that. Gloria hadn't heard them either, but Jake and probably now Abby had filled her in. She was probably comforting her daughter and granddaughter right now. The horrible thought of Abby leaving him, taking Caitie and building a life away from him, with another man hit him and he shook his head to clear it, continuing to stride alone the pavement - as if he could make things right again by walking far enough. But now, when he was almost numb with cold and his legs were aching and exhausted, he could sit and try to think straight. If Abby was there she would be telling him to think clearly and rationally about what to do. She always knew what to say to him. But Abby wasn't there. It was late at night and nobody else was around, he had yelled at his wife, upset his baby daughter and probably pissed off his in-laws and he had no idea where he was. Groaning at his own stupidity, Tim put his head in his hands. Why couldn't he just have bit his tongue for one more night?... 

He sat there with his head down and his eyes shut for quite some time, trying to make sense of his thoughts. Suddenly, he felt a familar hand on his shoulder and he shot upright. Abby was sitting beside him, her pale hand on his back. Her face was streaked with tears but she smiled tenatively at him.  
'How did you know I was here?' he said, echoing Abby's words from a day long ago. Funny how he could think about trying to reprogram a dangerous and homicidal car at a time like this.  
'I didn't' she replied, mimicking his own voice from that day. 'I've been driving around for an hour or more trying to find you. I borrowed your car, mine's got flat tires. As per usual' she added. Tim had to suppress a smile.  
'Where's Caitie?' he asked.  
'Back home, with Ziva. Mom and Jake left almost as soon as you did. I explained to them why we argued-' she looked guiltily at Tim '-and they understand'  
'Understand what, Abby? This? Us? If we don't understand that how can they?'  
Abby shook her head. 'They get where you're coming from, Tim. Mom told me a lot of hearing parents with deaf children feel the same way - like you said' - here, she lowered her eyes - 'They sometimes feel like they'll never know their children properly because their child is deaf and they aren't, especially if they don't understand ASL'  
Tim bent his head away from her. She rubbed his shoulder gently.  
'I'm sorry, Tim. I should have tried harder to understand how hard this is for you. If I find it difficult, knowing ASL as well as I do English, I don't know how hard this is for you, Tim. I should have listened to you, I should have helped you more. I'm sorry'  
Tim's face was stil turned away from her but she could feel his shoulders shaking - but not from the cold. Biting her lip, Abby put her arm around him and hugged him gently.  
'I'm sorry, too' he replied thickly. 'For - for everything-'  
'-I know' she said. 'Apology accepted'.  
Abby leaned her head on Tim's shoulder, and they sat together in silence for several long moments. Then, Tim wiped his face and turned to look at Abby. His eyes were red, and there was a hard, blazing look in them that told Abby that her Tim, the old Tim was starting to come back. Taking her hand, he looked her right in the eye as he said;  
'Abby, I promise you and Caitie that I will do everything I can to learn ASL from this day forward so I can be a part of Caitie's life. No matter how hard it is, I swear I will learn to communicate with you, and with her, even if it kills me'  
Abby kissed his hand. 'And I promise to help you no matter what. Should we both promise to talk things over more?'  
'Yes, I think so. I'm sorry for all this, Abs. It's just been getting to me so much lately and I-'  
He fell silent as Abby placed a finger to his lips, before sliding it sideways and kissing his softly.  
'I know' she whispered. 'Come on, let's get home'  
Tim stood up, and put one arm around Abby as they walked to the car.  
'So how about that evening class?'...

* * *

'Are you sure you want to do this?' Abby asked, as they walked to the community centre.  
'I'm positive' Tim replied, pushing Caitie's pram up the uneven path. 'Give me a hand with this, please?'  
Tony and Ziva immediately moved up front to help manoeuver the pram towards the front door.  
It was a week after Caitie's christening and Tim and Abby had spent the last five days searching for a good ASL evening class they could attend with Caitie. After spotting Tim searching on the Internet during their lunch break, Tony had offered to help (Ziva had spent the morning at home with suspected stomach flu, after waking up feeling wretched and being forbidden by Gibbs to come in and throw up all over the office) and with two of them working on it they had eventually found a class - "ABC ASL"; specializing in deaf parents with hearing children and vice versa. Abby and Tim had signed themselves and Caitie up immediately; but the real surprise came when Ziva and Tony decided to join too so they could communicate with Caitie as she got older. Touched by their friends' consideration, Tim had been even more determined to learn ASL properly. Abby had already spent every evening of that week repeating and explaining simple signs until Tim was satisfied they had sunk in. Now, it was time for their first class together, godparents and all. And in contrast to the dinner with Gloria and Jake the previous week, Tim was actually looking forward to it. Finally, he could begin to feel like a part of Caitie's world.

* * *

When they reached the room where the class was held, they weren't sure if they had the right room. Instead of chairs, there were a large number of cushions and giant beanbags around the room - the furniture had been cleared to the sides of the room. Laughing, chatting adults speaking in ASL and English alike were sitting on the bean bags and cushions in a circle in the middle of the room. Tim was relieved to see some people looked as perplexed by the sign language as he had felt. There were plenty of children too; babies as young as Caitie ranging up to teenagers conversing animatedly in sign and aloud. At one side of the circle, two tall, red haired women who looked very much alike were sitting together with a large wipe-board in between them. Tony gave a low whistle.  
'Keep Gibbs away from those two' he said, as they found two beanbags and a patchwork cushion and sat down together in the circle. Tim picked Caitie out of her pram, parked it behind them and held her on his lap as he sat down.  
'Not all guys have one-track minds, Tony' Ziva said, amused. 'Even if Gibbs didn't only have eyes for Madame Director, he doesn't chase women like you used to' Her eyes met Tonys, and one hand travelled delicately to her stomach. 'Some men prefer to focus on one woman, settle down, get engaged...start a family...'  
Abby and Tim's heads whipped round to stare in open-mouthed, blatant shock at Ziva, then each other, then at Tony...  
'Eh?' Tony said, missing the point completely. Suddenly, the two red-headed women stood up, and the room fell silent.

* * *

'Welcome to ABC ASL!' said the first woman, apparently the older of the two; beaming around at the group. The other woman, smiling just as widely, was saying what Tim guessed was the same thing in fast, fluent ASL.  
'My name is Teresa, and this is my sister Meggie' She gestured to the woman signing to the group, who waved hello.  
'My sister is deaf, so I learned ASL from a very early age with the rest of my family to communicate with her. We decided to form ABC ASL to teach people more about ASL and deafness in general, and provide support especially for families with deaf parents or children - as well as teaching ASL as a language'  
People were nodding and signing to each other in agreement. Tim looked at Abby, listening intently beside him; at Tony and Ziva, who were concentrating just as hard; and at little Caitie wriggling on his knee; and felt himself smile.  
'We're all new here, so first lets just go around and introduce ourselves. English or ASL, either is absolutely fine here' Teresa smiled, Meggie interpreting in sign. They smiled and nodded to Tim, Abby and the others. 'Would you like to break the ice?'  
'Certainly' Abby said, and Tim stood up with Caitie and reached down to help Abby up. Tony and Ziva stood up with them.  
'Wonderful!' said Teresa and Meggie, beaming.  
As they stood up, a little girl of around three years old said in an inadvertently loud whisper to her mother 'Mummy, there's something wrong with that woman. Why is she talking with her hands?'  
Abby smiled at Tim, and he cleared his throat.  
'We're Tim and Abby McGee...'  
'...and their friends and colleagues, Tony and Ziva DiNozzo-David...' Tony looked surprised but touched by Ziva's words.  
'...and this is our daughter, Caitie' said Tim proudly, holding her a little higher as she blinked round at the group. 'And there's nothing wrong with any of us'.

* * *

'I'm so proud of you, Tim' Abby said, later than evening.  
The class had been a big sucess. Tony, Ziva and Tim had all left feeling a little more confident in their sign-language, which Tim and Abby felt was an improvement. Teresa, Meggie and the others had all been so welcoming and supportive, it was impossible for Tim or anyone else to feel uncomfortable. Caitie had loved the attention everyone gave her, too; gurgling cheerfully whenever anyone patted her cheek and told Abby and Tim how beautiful she was. They had looked at a few of the very basic signs that evening, but what impressed Abby was the fact that Tim had smiled proudly, even when telling the room about Caitie's condition; and was still smiling hours later, sitting in their small but cosy living room with Caitie bathed and ready for bed.  
'Thanks, Abs. I'm glad I went. Looking forward to next week?'  
'Of course' Abby grinned. snuggling up to Tim and a so he could hold Caitie with her. 'And I think this little angel had fun, too'  
'I hope so' Tim smiled. 'But when you can tell me so, Caitie, I'll be able to understand you. Look!'  
Abby nearly cried with happiness as Tim's hands easily formed his first three simple words of ASL:  
_Time for bed._  
Abby kissed Tim on the cheek, and heard him gasp.  
'Look!'  
'I know, you did it! I'm so happy for you-'  
'Not that, look! Look at Caitie!'  
Abby looked down to see Caitie looking up into her father's beaming face, smiling toothlessly right back at him.  
'Oh! Her first smile...' Abby said, kissing Caitie too. 'You clever little girl!' she said, in ASL as well as English.  
'I guess we're all learning today' Tim said, picking Caitie up and taking Abby's hand. 'We can only keep getting better, eh, Caitie?'  
Caitie carried on smiling. Abby laughed, as the three of them made their way upstairs together.  
'Come on, it really _is _time for bed'  
As they put Caitie down and kissed her goodnight, a thought struck Abby.  
'I wonder if Tony's finally caught on and realized Ziva's pregnant?'...

* * *

(A/N: Yahoo! Tim's learning ASL, finally! And Tony's finally going to have a little DiNozzo, it was a spur-of-the-moment brainwave to add that in. I'm thinking about writing an extra little oneshot where Ziva tells Tony she's pregnant, but for now, I'll concentrate on this. Three chapters in two days, I'm so happy. And thanks for everyone who's been giving us lovely reviews on this one, we try not to disappoint. Onto Chapter 4...  
Oh, and I would have included the signs for 'time for bed' too, but I lost my dictionary. I'll add it in when I find it again.) 


	4. Caitie Speaks Out

(A/N and Disclaimer: Again, we don't own anything. Nothing and nobody whatsoever -unfortunately... Rie does have an interesting-looking, purple, possibly fractured toe if anyone's interested, haha.  
Wow, it's the end of our first long NCIS fanfic! Unless we choose to do an epilogue through lack of inspiration elsewhere, but otherwise this is the end. _Finite_. For now...Read, review if you want and we hope you enjoy it. _Adios.)_

_

* * *

_

'Here she is!' Abby called, carrying her one-year-old daughter out of the back door into the McGee's small garden. Tim walked over to meet his wife and daughter as they returned from Abby waking Caitie from her nap; kissing Abby and stroking Caitie's hair. The rest of the assembled team - Gibbs, Jenny, Tony, Ziva, and Ducky - all smiled, and began to sing;  
_'Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday dear Caitie, happy birthday to you!' _they chorused; almost in tune and signing as they sang. Caitie gurgled, clapping her hands happily. Abby put her down and she toddled, unsteady but determined on her pudgy legs, towards the table in the middle of the garden where her blue-iced birthday cake, topped with a single white candle, was waiting. Everyone watched in amusement as Caitie; wearing the trademark puzzled frown she had inherited from Abby, stretched up, yanking at the tablecloth as she tried to reach her cake. Tim intervened to prevent his daughter pulling the entire lunch table down on herself. Tony watched Tim whisk Caitie back over to Abby, smiling slightly.

'I can't believe it's been a year already' he mused to Ziva beside him. 'Look at her. She's grown so much. It doesn't seem like long ago we were all crowding into their hospital room when Caitie was born and now - ' he gestured to the group around him '...everything's changing, isn't it?'  
'Yes, Tony' Ziva said, kissing her fiancé and smiling. 'But changing for the better, yes?'  
Tony returned her smile, and put his arm around her. Their one-month-old, Theo, blinked his large dark eyes up at his parents.  
'You bet' Tony said, looking at his son with so much love in her eyes it was all Ziva could do to kiss him again.

Gibbs stood a little way away, looking from one family to another - Abby and Tim playing peek-a-boo with Caitie; and Tony and Ziva standing nearby talking softly, holding Theo between them. Shaking his head slightly, he took a swig of his already warming beer.  
'I made Rule 12 for a reason' he muttered. 'I didn't expect to have my four best agents go and break it - together'  
'Don't be so down, Jethro' Jenny said, slipping up behind him and surreptitiously linking her fingers with his. She leaned in closer, lowering her voice to whisper in his ear; 'And as you well know, some rules were meant to be broken'  
Gibbs turned his head and kissed her gently on the cheek.  
'I'll give you that, Jen' he smiled. 'You've made a hypocrite out of me'  
'And that's a bad thing?' he replied, before surprising him by kissinghim full on the mouth, in full view of everyone else. Abby laughed, and Tim shielded Caitie's eyes from the obvious couple; Ziva smirked as Tony dug in his pocket and handed over a $20 bill ('Thank _you_, Tony!'); and Ducky rolled his eyes as he signed to Abby; '_You've never been for after-work drinks with the pair of them. After a few glasses of wine...you can imagine. I never know where to look!'  
'Spare me the details, Ducky' _Abby replied, laughing. Gibbs broke away from Jenny and looked sharply at the pair of them.  
'You're not the only ones here who speak ASL, you know' he reminded them.  
_'Very true' _Tim signed. Abby beamed, and kissed him proudly on the cheek.  
_'You better believe it'_ she told him delightedly.

* * *

Since Caitie had blessed him with her first smile, Tim had worked consistently hard at his ASL; helped by Abby both inside and outside their evening class. Abby had lost count of the evenings when she had come to bed to find her husband engrossed in one of his many ASL dictionaries; his hands twitching as he absorbed new signs. As he learned more and more; Abby tested him by speaking in ASL at odd moments, and every time he was able to understand and reply to her fast signing, it was hard to tell who was more pleased with his progress. Teresa and Meggie, from ABC ASL, had both commented on how fast he picked up on new signs and how hard he worked to memorize them. Even Gibbs had stated how impressed he was with Tim - more than once. As ASL became more and more familiar to him, Tim felt less out of his depth and subsequently more confident in his abilities. Abby was delighted with him. 

Together, they had been able to work simple, easy signs into everyday life with Caitie; when bathing or feeding her, and putting her to bed, ASL had become almost second nature to them. They still spoke aloud to her, as they did with the test of the team and each other - Abby was determined that Caitie would succeed in her own 'weak spot' of lip reading. But as ASL became easier and more natural to Tim, Caitie's deafness didn't feel like the insurmountable burden that it had done previously. At least now he could rest assured that he would be able to communicate fully with his daughter as she grew older, as Abby could. And he felt a small glow of pride and happiness every time he reminded himself that he would no longer be cut out of Caitie's life.

Caitie herself was growing up to be a beautiful baby; with light brown, soft curly hair - which Abby had spent over an an hour putting into bunches that morning to match her own - and big green eyes almost identical to her mothers save for the hazel strip of her irises. Save from her hair - which was almost definitely inherited from Tim, as it was the same in colour and texture - she was growing up to look just like Abby. Tim had put his foot down and insisted on Abby not dressing Caitie like a mini-Goth clone of her mother until she was at least a little older, which she had grudgingly agreed to. Today, Caitie was wearing a white dress with pale purple embroidery -a birthday gift from Jenny -and dark purple hair ribbons which she had attempted to pull out almost as soon as her parents had finished tying them. Her stubborn streak always made Tim laugh - it was another little bit of Abby that he saw in Caitie every day, and loved.

But as much as Caitie looked like Abby, it was obvious that she was a daddy's girl at heart. You only had to see the huge smile she gave him as he picked her up or woke her from a nap (when anyone outside her extended NCIS family would have had to cope with her screaming for hours on end), the way she tottered towards him, arms outstretched, when he walked into the room, or her gurgles of delight whenever her daddy cuddled her to know it. Nothing could make Caitie happier than sitting on her daddy's knee as watching as he fiddled around on his computer; or spending their traditional McGee Sunday mornings snuggled up with Caitie in between her parents on the sofa watching Lord of the Rings - or, more recently, Star Wars. Like Tim, Caitie had a clear preference for Episode IV. It was only a matter of time, according to Tony, before Tim had taught her how to play as an Elf Lord on his favourite online game - which had earned him a headslap from Gibbs. Still, the prospect was still there.

* * *

'_Ready for your birthday cake, Caitie?' _Tim asked his daughter, as Abby jiggled her up and down in her arms. Caitie smiled widely.  
'I'll take that as a yes' he laughed, kissing her on the forehead. They all gathered around the table; Theo dozing in Tony's arms; as Tim lit the single candle on Caitie's cake. Abby had made it herself, and had spent the whole morning telling anyone who'd listen how proud she was she'd finally managed to bake a cake without having the fire department round. They ahd to admit, she'd done a good job -particularly with the decorating. _Happy 1st Birthday Caitie _was iced in purple in the centre, and around the edge were seven hand-iced cartoon-style faces - Abby and Tim, Gibbs and Jenny, Tony, Ziva and Ducky. It had taken her forever but she was happy with the end result. So happy, in fact, that she had been reluctcnet to cut it and eat it at the party.  
'We could give cupcakes instead! Or take photos of the cake for people to keep so we didn't have to eat it' she had suggested to Tim earlier that day.  
'I am not giving people photos of a cake that you spent hours making yourself while the original grows mould in our kitchen' Tim had replied. 'You can make another one if you love it that much! But we're eating this one'  
So Tim had won the argument, and now the cake was ready to be cut and eaten. After, of course, one final thing.  
'Ready to blow your candle out, Caitie?' Abby said. 'Okay, make a wish!'  
Caitie giggled happily as Tim and Abby leaned forward and blew out her single candle together. 

'Alright, cake time!' Tony said, as Abby stood Caitie gently on the ground so she could remove the candle and cut the cake - 'so I can make sure everyone gets to eat their own head'. Caitie toddled over to her father, and tugged at his trouser leg. He smiled down at her.  
_'Hello, Caitie' _he said.  
Caitie looked up at him, her little face the picture of concentration; before lifting her small hands towards him. Making her right into a crescent shape and stretching out her left index finger; she banged her two hands together in a single sign.  
_Daddy.  
_Tim's mouth fell open in shock.  
'Oh my...' he said. 'Everyone, look at this!'  
Everyone turned to face Tim. 'What's up?' asked Abby, cake knife in her hand.  
'Caitie just said her first word!'  
Everyone stopped whatever they were doing and crowded round. Tim squatted down in front of Caitie.  
'_Do it again, Caitie'_ he signed, smiling encouragingly.  
Caitie looked hard at her father and repeated the sign.  
'_Daddy' _she signed clearly.  
'She said 'daddy'! I'm her first word!' Tim said ecstatically. He picked Caitie up and whirled her around, as everyone laughed and congratulated Caitie. Abby took her daughter from Tim and kissed them both, before signing to Caitie '_What about me?'_  
'You'll be next, Abbs. I can't believe she said 'daddy' to me! _You clever girl!_' he signed to Caitie, smiling so proudly at his daughter.  
'Her first words on her first birthday. That's convenient' Gibbs smiled. 'She's growing up'  
'I know. Isn't it amazing?' Tim replied, looking at Caitie in wonder. 'Isn't she amazing?'  
'That she is' Ziva said. 'Congratulations, Tim'  
'Thanks' he replied. 'It'll be your turn soon'  
Tony and Ziva both glanced down at their sleeping son in Tony's arms, and gulped.  
'Maybe not too soon' Tony said nervously. Tim laughed, as Abby finished cutting the cake and passed everyone their paper plates. Tony placed Theo back into his baby carrier beside Ziva as they sat down, and Caitie sat in her high chair to eat her own piece. 'Eat' may have been a little euphemistic. More cake ended up in her hair than in her mouth. Abby and Tim seated themselves beside their daughter to help her eat, signing as they did so.

'_I'm so proud of her_' said Tim, as Abby broke the slice of cake into smaller pieces to allow Caitie to eat it.  
_'I am too'_ Abby replied, as Tim picked a few bits of icing out of Caitie's hair. _'But I'm proud of you too'_  
'Why me?' Tim asked, as Caitie picked up a fistful of cake and actually managed to get it on target into her mouth. Abby looked at Tim, her eyes bright.  
_'Because you've come so far. You can communicate in ASL better than Tony and Ziva, almost as well as Gibbs now. You used to be so scared about being cut out of Caitie's life because you can hear and she can't - but now look at you. She's talking to you too'_ Abby smiled, taking Tim's hand. _'And you're both going to keep getting better'_  
_'Thank you'_ Tim said, kissing Abby's cheek.  
Caitie smiled toothily at her parents, as semi-chewed cake oozed out from between her few teeth. They both laughed, and Abby picked Caitie up to wipe her face. Tim put his arm around the pair of them, and they looked around the sunny garden - at their friends, laughing and talking in the early afternoon sun; at each other; and at Caitie. Everyone they needed was there. Their friends. Their family.  
_'I love you'_ Tim signed to Abby, as she rested her head on his shoulder. _'Both of you'  
_'I know' she replied softly, winding her arm around him too. _'I love you too'_

* * *

There are moments to be remembered; those to be savoured; and those to be cherished. This was one of the latter. Tim and Abby had found each other, they had found love, and they had found a family. They had found everything they needed in each other. Gibbs knew that better than anyone. Watching them standing together in the sun, with their beautiful daughter in their arms, he couldn't imagine them being better off anywhere else that with each other.  
'I'm so glad I didn't stop them' he said quietly. Jenny smiled at his words.  
'So am I' she added. 'And so, Jethro, are they'. 

_end._

* * *

(A/N: I had no idea whatsoever how to end this so I just kind of stopped it. We might write an epilogue though, we added 'News' as a oneshot showing what might have happened between Tony and Ziva at the end of Chapter 3 - but if we don't then thats it. Until the next one...ahem, yeah. Thankies to everyone who reviewed and stuff for this one, hope you enjoyed it. (_signs_) Bye for now!  
Love it? Review it.  
Hate it? Review it.  
Get completely lost by the story in general and think we need our heads whacking together? Review it and tell us so!  
Muchas besos, y gracias) 


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